Voice or loyalty? Mandated child protection networks in Germany, Norway and Québec

Internationally, networking is a ubiquitous agenda in fields of social service provision. However, it is an open question what this implies for non-statutory actors and their relations to public authorities. Comparing... [ view full abstract ]

Internationally, networking is a ubiquitous agenda in fields of social service provision. However, it is an open question what this implies for non-statutory actors and their relations to public authorities. Comparing regulatory frameworks in three jurisdictions representing distinctive ‘worlds of welfare services’ –Germany, Norway and Quebec– this paper aims at eliciting the normative rationales that underpin logics of collaboration in local service networks entrusted with in child welfare and protection systems, with a special focus on the role of involved nonprofit organizations. In Norway, where services are little diversified networking appears as a way of opening up for greater organizational plurality, within and beyond the public sector realm. This in theory provides greater space for civic voice. In Germany in contrast, where services are highly pluralized, networks are seen as an instrument for streamlining complexity which implies greater pressure on the loyalty of those many non-statutory agencies involved. Quebec is an intermediate case, as networking is envisioned as a catalyst for aligning two co-existing service streams and mitigating the child protection–family support divide, with non-statutory actors often operating in the wider periphery of the public sector. Importantly, in all three places networking is now being promoted through similar highly formalized, top-down regulatory provisions; although the intended directions of change differ markedly, ‘voice’ may not be the primordial reference for the involved public authorities.